Abstract
We present a method for measuring absorption at the 1 × 10-5 cm-1 level in high-quality optical materials. Using a Shack-Hartmann wave-front detector, thermal lensing in these materials may be measured. Then, the absorption coefficient may be estimated by fitting the observed deformation to a thermal lensing model based on the temperature dependences of the refractive index and the thermal expansion coefficient. For a particular sample of fused silica, the absorption coefficient was determined to be 1.8 ± 0.4 × 10-5 cm-1. Obtaining this result requires a resolution in the optical path length better than ±0.1 nm.
© 2003 Optical Society of America
Full Article | PDF ArticleMore Like This
Justin D. Mansell, Joseph Hennawi, Eric K. Gustafson, Martin M. Fejer, Robert L. Byer, David Clubley, Sanichiro Yoshida, and David H. Reitze
Appl. Opt. 40(3) 366-374 (2001)
Salvador Bará
J. Opt. Soc. Am. A 20(12) 2237-2245 (2003)
Tae Moon Jeong, Manoj Menon, and Geunyoung Yoon
Appl. Opt. 44(21) 4523-4527 (2005)